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joidevie

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Everything posted by joidevie

  1. Great, thanks.. And any idea whether you can CT before the expiry and get the new one dated from the expiry? The points above point to having it done *on* expiry and then using the ensuing 2 months to remedy etc...
  2. Is anyone able to clear up the CT date(s) schedule? I'm a little unsure of the exact protocol.. Is it possible (as in the UK) to take a test 1 month in advance of expiry and have a new passed test dated from the finish of the old certificate? If not, does one typically book a test for as close to the end of the old certificate expiry and 'use' the 2 month 'repair' period (should the car fail) to book a garage and get the car fixed etc. and then contre-visite within that 2 month period? And is one 'allowed' to use the car during this period - either for traveling to/from a garage/testing centre, or for personal use? I'm looking at when to (hopefully) book my next visit to France next year in order to sort the CT renewal, and as the car is at an airport there, I need to choose the best dates possible so I can still use the car to get 'home' (in France) and have the maximum amount of time to cover all eventualities. With travel currently being so restricted, I want to get this as right as possible (all with the added curve ball of another possible confinement when my CT is due next April)! Many thanks..
  3. Thanks Théière.. Would you apply this straight onto smooth placo, or should I consider stapling some fine (7mm squares) mesh onto the board first as a key? Or apply a PVA or other 'primer? Thanks also for the other suggestions!
  4. We've just had a room plasterboarded - a mix of boards glued on with MAP, and some rail work (ceiling mainly). We have a fireplace 'nook' with a canopy which has been plasterboarded with pink placos, including the fireplace surround (pillars, built from cellulose blocs, but now covered in the placos). Inside this 'nook', we plan to have a wood burner, which will have ample space around it. What we're hoping to do is 'render' (or coat) the space behind the woodburner and the surrounding 'pillars' in a 'stone like' finish (or render like) to make it less smooth and 'perfect'.. To make a sort of fake stone look (hopefully quite convincing!). What might we use? I have doubts a simple lime mortar will stick, or just crack at a later date.. Or just fall off.. What about a classic plaster like 'Lutece' (mixed with a little sand, and some PVA on the boards as a bonding aid?). Or a 'Weber' type crepi product which might have some resin additives to help with flexibility (and heat effect)? Or an 'out of the tub' type crepi? We're trying to use as many natural products as possible and are painting our walls with home mixed limewash (with pigments etc.), so would like to retain a nice 'organic/rustic' feel where possible! Any thoughts? 
  5. Thanks Idun.. It seems to be what I've 'heard'.. In truth, the UK 'rule' is probably not far off this but people tend to take as much as they can.. When I got a fine, I was definitely on a red light, so fair enough. I was stressed with a heavy load sticking out of the back of an estate car, and I was paying more attention to looking in the rear mirror than the lights.. So you er on suggesting your visitors to not slam on the brakes on orange? It's a fine line - you could have crossed with your front wheels just as you notice in the corner of your eye the light change from green to orange.. Then what? Split second decision the check no one is 10cm off your rear and arrête! I'm truly paranoid, especially at that particular light, and even take detours to avoid it!
  6. Having been caught out a couple of years ago, I was wondering if there is any definitive rule as to when you 'jump' a light, or are simply making a sensible decision. Since having been fined once, I am absolutely paranoid about crossing (that same) traffic lights with cameras - to the point of slamming my foot on the brakes at the mere whiff of a change of light. Dangerous in my opinion! In the UK it's clear, if you cross on orange, that's considered OK. However in France, on asking around, I get very mixed and confused responses.. Many say 'if your front wheels have crossed on orange...' etc etc. Is there a definitive rule? Anyone have a link to any sites? Many thanks!
  7. Thank you Pomme, very helpful indeed [;-)]
  8. Hello.. Does anyone know what EDF's policy is regarding replacing a very old blue electricity meter with a new one, possibly with the facility of meter reading from outside the house? And also the thick main cable which runs from their supply in the street outside, down the facade of our house and then into the meter? It's all very old (but functions).. Are they amenable to doing this, and is it at their cost? Many thanks!
  9. OK, thanks again.... I'll do nothing for now and let the whole process kick in.. I'll be back on this thread soon no doubt, but it should help others later on as I'm sure I'm not the only one thinking of doing this [:)]
  10. Thanks Jako. I actually now signed up with Coriolis myself, eventually... The online application crashed as I tried to make the €1 payment to confirm the order leaving me with a dead order (and order number) in my 'espace client'. I then phoned, and we went through the the whole shebang again, but the kind operator couldn't get my Orange 'RIO"(keep your existing phone number) code to work, so I went for the 'get a new number' option knowing I'll need to cancel Orange myself. My question now is, will Coriolis simply override my existing number for a new connection automatically, even before I 'manually' cancel my Orange contract? (ie. not cancelling Orange won't impede the new connection?). Things seem to work differently if you don't 'migrate' your number. Sue, just the clarify, my friend didn't cancel the Orange contract himself, it was done by Coriolis and he retained his phone number - however, thank you very much for your posts!
  11. OK, thanks.. Seems it can take up to 15 days for them to send you (or email) the return forms, yet you're required to return the box within 30 days of ending your contract. So really only 15 days if the wind's against you! livebox return link here Will make for an interesting time... Not so great for my friend out in France who now has pinned down a Coriolis technician to visit, but not until next week - so around 3 weeks after terminating his Orange account. I guess as the 'haut débit' kit in the village is brand new, there may yet continue to be more and more problems - but I know of others who have had the basic Coriolis 1mbps there for a while now without problem, and I really don't understand the issue as he is not 'changing' to fibre, just to a faster 20mbps ADSL [blink]
  12. .... a bit of a worrying update, a friend in the village 'signed up' with Coriolis nearly 10 days ago and Orange duly cut him off within 3 or 4 days leaving him sitting in the garden harvesting his Bouygues mobile data (when he can get it). Is there any obligation on either provider to ensure little or no interruption? I'm not there now, so I don't know exactly what's going on, but 10 days seems a long time.. And I'm not sure Orange have begun to request their Livebox back either.. Anyone?  [blink]
  13. I second the 4G roaming if you get a good signal. My Vodafone is £20 a month with 20gb of data, and they don't restrict usage in the EU at all (unlike Three (no streaming + a cap) and EE who cap at 12gb). If you're fortunate like us, we have just gone 'degroupé' and have a much wider choice of ADSL starting at €15 (RED/SFR) a month but no on/off option..
  14. Thanks Jako.. Did you have ADSL outage in between the changeover? I have a friend who's just signed up with Coriolis and says Orange have now disconnected him before Coriolis have set him up, which I was under the impression wasn't supposed to be allowed to happen? (He may, on the other hand, be 'live' but unable to successfully configure his new box..) I decided for to wait until I got a better idea of the time frame within which Orange would ask for me to return my Livebox. In the Coriolis booth, they looked it up and it says 'within 30 days' - but I have no idea 'when' the 30 days begin? (ie. when do they officially ask/give you a return form etc.). I need to be sure I can be at the property at the right time(s) to guarantee I can get their box back to them.. (Or can you drop it in store?). How soon after ordering a 'new' connection/provider contract do Orange take to send you the returns paperwork? Thanks again!
  15. [quote user="suein56"]A good thing to do might be to test your line : here : http://www.ariase.com or here : http://www.degrouptest.com Bring in France, when you have finally effected the change over and paid any outstanding bills to Orange, it might be a good idea to manually cancel the direct debit with your Bank .. just in case.[/quote] Always a good idea [:)]
  16. Thanks Sue..  So similar now to the UK..? The 'Sosh' deal isn't too bad, but I rarely use my Leclerc SIM as it is, and my Orange ADSL is currently €36. So if I want to go RED or Coriolis (€15 & €19 respectively), I should be able to simply go online and 'purchase' their package using my existing phone number, and after a few days, voila - no interruption in service, the incoming provider take care of the Orange contract cancellation (and the bank prelevements to Orange will cease too)? It was very smooth in the UK, and all my 'old' contracts were auto triggered to cancel along with all the outgoing payments etc.. [geek]
  17. Hello all... Long time no posting on here.. Our village has just connected to 'haut débit' and I'm definitely long overdue for a contract/supplier change. I've been with Orange for years (no upgrades) so well out of contract. I'm looking at Coriolis or Red (SFR) ADSL 20mbps  either with or without telephone line. In the UK I've recently taken up fibre with Vodafone and everything was effectively done by Vodafone (cancelling the existing SKY broadband and BT Landline). I'm not remotely expecting it to be as easy in France, but I'd be interested in hearing any suggestions on the following: Ordering 'online' - will my existing phone number be used (and retained)? Am I better off going in store - my French is good, but in the past, the telecoms sales staff have nearly always been completely all over the place..? What sort of 'changeover' time can I expect? (I'm not planing to go fibre, merely 'degroupé ADSL)? Do I cancel my Orange contract first, or is there a system in place to switch over? Any obvious issues with RED or Coriolis? (I believe RED use foreign call centres which can be shambolic according to some forums..)? etc. etc. etc. I'm expecting complications, but any warnings are most welcome! Not being in France for more than a week at a time this year might also add problems.. Many thanks [:)]
  18. Not sure if this has been discussed, but I was reading up a bit on expats who want to register to vote in June. It's an important one in my book! http://www.connexionfrance.com/Register-vote-UK-EU-referendum-17680-view-article.html There is a lot on Google, especially on Spanish forums..
  19. Many thanks for all of the helpful responses.. For the meantime, we have decided to invest in a few day's labour and 150 or so new tiles (a new 'patinée Midi' style which look great) to replace any degraded/cracked/broken tiles, along with a good 'lift & sweep' and rearrangement etc. Probably around €1,200 all in once all the bits 'n bobs are included.. The basics are all pretty decent in truth, and access to the chevrons and beams is an easy reach, and I'll Xlophene everything, and I even bagged a couple of large tins of water based exterior wood varnish which I'll spray onto susceptible timber.. It would be so easy to over spend on these sorts of things, and with regular 'tidying & cleaning' of the tiles, we hope that all will be well for the meantime.. Thanks again.
  20. I was hoping for some additional things to consider before our macon comes by this evening to discuss a 'revision' of our Canal Tuile roof.. Previous 'chats' with him have discussed bits and pieces, but I now want a clear idea of what to get him to do. It's reasonably water tight but pretty old, and before plaster boarding the inside the loft, we want to get someone up there to clean, re-arrange, replace tiles etc so we have our best chance of no leaks. We've budgeted about a week's work for someone, and as many new tiles as they might need, and it's about 100 m/2 of roof (taking into account the roof pitch). The chevrons running downwards are all good, and currently the tiles sit directly in the gap, and are mortared in with a crumbling chalk based mix. No litteaux or planks running cross ways. What should the macon be recommending? Lifting every single tile, cleaning and replacing? Should that bottom layer be mortared in again, or should it just sit with gravity in action? Should any 'cross slats' (litteaux) be added? I presume the main central ridge should at least be mortared in.. Is there a good herbicide to consider applying to deter weeds? Our plan later was to then attach OSB 3 underneath the chevrons (from inside the loft), then some battens, insulation & placo.. But my concern is spotting any later leaks, and any water running through the tiles will naturally accumulate at the point where the OSB and beams meet. I suppose, if each tile is actually lifted, the OSB could go on top of the chevrons, but this would all amount to an almost re-roof, with scaffolding, much higher costs etc. Which is a bit more than we perhaps wanted for now.. Any thoughts on an effective and low to medium budget 'revision'? Many thanks..
  21. What I was hoping to hear, and as I'm not 'resident' in France, I have no intention of changing my licence.. Lessons learned, get more sleep, and don't rush decisions in a split second.. Thanks..
  22. I'm probably clutching at straws here, but I jumped a red light by about a second or two as I had a very heavy and awkward load of chipboard sheets in the back of an estate car (sticking out the back a bit as well, but well tied up) - and I took a split decision not to stop as I personally felt it was more dangerous to hard stop than continue on.. So, from the camera's point of view, a jump. What is the cat in hell's chance of getting this let off, or am I inviting trouble with further 'contraventions' with not 'correctly securing' my load etc? I feel quite stupid now as I was tired and probably made a poor decision. And what is the situation with points? I've been decided -4 and I have a French registered car (at our residence secondaire) but a UK licience. Is the system the same? (4 points is quite a lot). Will this be tracked back to the UK even if I pay the €90 fine right away? Will this affect my French insurance premium? I'm quite cross with myself, but a smidge of me thinks I made the right decision, but I'd rather not make things any worse for myself! Any thoughts? Thanks.
  23. I've never needed a counterpart in France either (for hiring), but was curious as to whether this new 'system' would affect those of us with a 'second car' based in France.. Agreed, the cops will probably have little idea of this, and I'm sure a UK photo licence will continue to look the part..  
  24. Does anyone know if the new code system is only relevant to hiring a car, or does it have implications for  those of us with UK licences with cars registered and used in France? BBC article here http://www.bbc.co.uk/news/business-32481382 Many thanks if anyone's more in the know than me!
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